Obituary of John Earl "Jackie" Hopkins

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of John Earl “Jackie” Hopkins of Louisdale, who passed away at the Strait Richmond Hospital in Evanston on January 27th, 2019 after a brief but courageous battle with cancer.  Born in Port Hawkesbury, NS on February 28th, 1946 and raised in Kempt Road, NS by his adoptive mother, Margaret MacEachern Hopkins (Andrew), Jackie is survived by his loving wife of 51 years, Sylvia (Marchand) Hopkins, Louisdale; daughters, Rhonda Gerrior (Charlie), Irish Vale, Rachel Martell (David), Middle Sackville, Shauna Sampson (Brent) and Shannon McNamara, both of Louisdale; grandchildren, Meaghan Colford(Ben), Jacob Martell, Brady Gerrior, Taylor Sampson, Riley Parker, Spencer McNamara and Olivia McNamara; great-grandchild, Landon Colford; siblings, Murleen Marchbank and Kevin Hopkins (Mavis), both of Sarnia, Ont and Ida Hutt of Truro. He is also survived by his biological siblings, who he was fortunate to meet later in life, Bert McKay (Diane), Charles McKay (Linda), Darcy McKay, Calvin McKay (Micheline), Buhay McKeaevney (Danny), Cathy Aucoin (Andre), Johnny McKay and Jimmy McKay.

Besides his adoptive mother, Jackie was predeceased by his biological parents, Calvin and Margaret (Embree) McKay; siblings, Ella Hopkins (Lala), John Henry Hopkins, Kay Gillan, Sadie Hopkins, Beatrice Savage and Mae Keefe. He was also predeceased by his precious granddaughter, Shelby Gerrior.

Jackie received his Bachelor of Education from St. Francis Xavier University in 1972 and spent his entire career, not only educating the children of Richmond County, but truly caring about each and every student that entered his classroom.  He was highly respected in the teaching community and developed many friendships with his colleagues along the way.  Known to many as Mr. Hopkins, he always made time to stop and chat with any of his former students and enjoyed hearing where life had taken them. Outside of his career, Jackie devoted countless hours volunteering in his community, he was always eager to step up and lead the way.  He was proud to be a long-standing member of the Louisdale Lions Club where he served 2 terms as President.  He was also a life time member of the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 47, where he also proudly served as president for 2 terms and most recently became Zone 3 Commander for the Cape Breton Region.  He served on the Board of Directors for Telile community television as well.  

Jackie was well known for his notorious sense of humor, his quick wit and ability to express what was on his mind.  He had many life long friends that he enjoyed spending time with and spent many nights laughing and telling stories over a game of cards or around a campfire where he would play his guitar and sing long into the night.  He had a natural talent for music and played several instruments by ear. He was an athlete and enjoyed many sports.  In his younger years he could be found in the rink net minding for the Louisdale Vets or at the ball field, behind the plate for the Louisdale Baracos. He also enjoyed curling, bowling and was an avid golfer, he spent most of his free time on the course during the golfing season.  His love of sports carried through to all his grandchildren and he could often be found on sidelines of every game cheering them on. He took great pride in all of their accomplishments and was their biggest fan.  Jackie will always be remembered as a strong family man.He treasured his 4 daughters, grandchildren and great-grandsonimmensely.  

The family would like to express our sincere gratitude to the nursing staff at the Strait Richmond Hospital along with Dr. Debbie Marchand, Dr. Philip Cooper and Nancy Cameron.  Your care and compassion was greatly appreciated during this difficult time and your kindness will never be forgotten.

Visitation will be held Friday, February 1st, 2019, from 6:00-9:00pm, in the Glen Sampson Room, Louisdale.  Funeral mass will take place on Saturday, February 2nd, 2019 at 11:00am, St. Louis Parish, Louisdale with Rev. Antolin Asor officiating. Burial will take place in the St. Louis Parish Cemetery at a later date.  Memorial donations can be made to the Shelby Shines OnActs of Kindness Society.  Funeral arrangements are entrusted to C.H. Boudreau Funeral Home Ltd.  To send words of comfort to the family or to light a candle in memory of Jackie please visit www.chboudreau.com